


I Feel You

by theaterkidsamwinchester



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! - All Media Types, Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Because they're in two different realms right now, Blindshipping, Eventual Romance, Fix-It, M/M, Post-Canon, Post-Canon Fix-It, Puzzleshipping, Slow Burn, Tendershipping, Unholy mix of manga and anime canon, escaping the afterlife, it's going to be dumb and dumber here I swear, like super slow, these two idiots
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-24
Updated: 2020-09-27
Packaged: 2021-03-04 04:48:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 13,201
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24887875
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theaterkidsamwinchester/pseuds/theaterkidsamwinchester
Summary: Atem hasn't been the same since leaving his partner, almost as if he lost his sense of self along with losing the person who meant the most to him. He has been quiet, moody, and has lost the decisive attitude that helped him win so many battles. With the help of his friends(and personal thorn in his side) in the afterlife, can he regain his spark and make it back to the one he loves?
Relationships: Atem/Mutou Yuugi, Bakura Ryou/Yami Bakura, Mutou Yuugi/Yami Yuugi
Comments: 38
Kudos: 67





	1. An Unlikely Proposal

**Author's Note:**

> So hey! My first fic for the fandom, even though I've been lurking for years x'D I finally got the inspiration to work on it, so hopefully you guys enjoy! I'm sure we all enjoy a fix it fic for our lovely heroes, so sit back, and let the game begin! This is un-beta'd, so if anyone spots anything glaringly obvious that needs to be fixed, please let me know and I'll fix it!

_"They gave me a life that's not so easy to live  
And then they sent me on my way  
I left my love, forgot my dreams  
I lost them along the way..."_

The wind blew teasingly across golden blond bangs, tousling them and causing the tri-colored teen to grunt in irritation as he pushed them out of his way for the millionth time, knocking one of his rings against his golden circlet in the process. This made him flinch because he was still unused to wearing the trappings of his rank, and he looked at his hand in consternation for a moment before he sighed and gave up, allowing the wind to do what it would with his messy locks. 

Currently, he stood on the balcony of his father’s palace, staring out over the desert as the sun slowly rose. It was his father’s palace, rather than his, because the man had been ruling the fields of reeds for the 3000 years Atem was lost to the puzzle. 

Atem had no desire to change the status quo, as he had barely ruled a month before he had sacrificed himself for his people, and he really had no experience or knowledge of the best way to lead his people in peace time rather than through a war. However, his priests and family kept dropping not-so-subtle hints that he should take his father’s place as the lord of two lands, and he wasn’t sure how much longer he could fend them off.

Here he was, finally returned to the home, family, and friends he had lost so long ago, and all he could think about were the people he had left behind, and how much he did not want to return to the throne. Especially not a throne that was more of a figurehead position because what tough decisions would a leader have to make in paradise?

From the very first moment the doors to the afterlife closed behind him, no, even before that, as he had prepared for the ceremonial duel, he had regretted that he had to separate from his other half. He had seen no other option at the time, as the items had to be sealed and he had no body of his own, but he wished now that he had fought harder to stay. All he had ever wanted was to stay with his aibou forever, but the gods had other plans for him. His other had offered to share all of his memories with him, and he would have been content with just the memories shared between them as long as he had gotten to stay with Yugi. 

He should have realized sooner that getting all his memories back and his identity would mean _nothing_ if his partner wasn’t there with him. 

Why couldn’t he have found some way to live with Yugi and the others that didn't involve him being a parasitic burden to his aibou? Considering all the battles they had struggled through, surely they could have found some way to seal the items and still allow him to stay with the ones he loved? 

He did however, feel like he was being ungrateful to the ones here with him in Aaru, who had no idea the full extent of his longing to return to the surface world. He cared as much for them as he did for Yugi and the others, but there was a gap between them that he just couldn’t cross. While he did have all his memories of his time in Egypt now, such as growing up with Mana and Mahad, bickering with Seto about the best way to handle situations, and the warm attention from his father and mother, he still had this... disconnect towards them. He had spent millenia as a lone spirit with no memories, and then years as mou hitori no yugi, and that had changed him irrevocably from the teen that they remembered so fondly. He didn’t know how to be this person that they’ve been waiting on, and it was draining his spirit trying to be someone he left behind long ago. 

The door cracked open behind him, and he resisted the urge to jump, knowing that it was likely just a servant informing him that the morning meal was ready. He was unprepared, however, for the whirlwind teen who was actually entering the room. 

“Good morning, Prince Atem!!” Mana shouted happily, jumping on his back and nearly sending them careening over the railing of the balcony. Atem grunted, narrowly hanging onto the railing with all the air knocked out of him by her exuberant greeting, and he glared behind him at the giggling menace hanging over his right shoulder. He righted the two of them, with much difficulty as Mana refused to drop down from her perch on his back, and took a couple of deep breaths to recover before speaking.

“Must you do that every time you see me? You could’ve knocked us both over the edge!” Atem said with exasperation (though still slightly fondly, despite himself), jostling Mana back and forth to encourage her to get down. This clearly only made her more determined, as she tightened her grip around his neck, causing him to wheeze and stumble to the side. 

She grinned and loosened her grip slightly, stating smugly, “What, this? Why, how else will you know how excited I am to see you~?” 

She giggled, finally deigning to jump down and resume standing like a normal human being. Atem rolled his eyes, rubbing his neck where she had hung, and gently pushed her shoulder with a hand as he walked past her. She made a wounded noise, all false pain, and hurried after him as he walked to his dresser.

While he had already put on his crown and his shendyt before his ruminations on the balcony, he had yet to put on the bracelets and golden bands that were now a normal part of his routine. He carefully snapped each article in place, and started lining his eyes with kohl, ignoring the impatient huffing coming from behind him. She had been the one to come in before he was ready, she could wait a bit while he prepared for the day. He delighted in going as slowly as possible, figuring she deserved the torture after their near-death experience. 

“Come onnnn prince, we don’t have all day! You know how much the others eat, Master Mahad will have eaten all the best fruit by now!” Mana whined, before jumping as an unexpected voice came from the doorway. 

“Oh I will, will I? And how do you propose I’d do so when I had to find my prince and my wayward apprentice?” Mahad cocked an eyebrow at the now-sheepish Mana, before turning to Atem and bowing lightly. “My prince, it is good to see you this morning.” 

Atem scoffed lightly, “First I had to endure Mana’s over-zealous greeting, and now to be greeted so formally by one of my closest friends? How cruel the morning is thus far.” 

Mahad coughed into a fist, slightly embarrassed and mumbling an apology, while Mana just grinned between the two of them, nudging Mahad in the side teasingly. This feeling of camaraderie reminded him of the times when Jounouchi would get embarrassed over his words, the others gently teasing him for it, and Atem felt his levity fade as he finished getting ready to leave his rooms. While he appreciated the efforts of his two closest friends to cheer him up, it was hard to keep up the energy when he was still in mourning for the life he left behind. Lost in his thoughts again, he nearly missed the Look the other two exchanged as he walked towards his chamber doors. He frowned, picking up the pace and ducking his head a bit to avoid scrutiny. Was he failing to play the part of “Prince Atem” once again? He didn’t know what they wanted from him, and he was tired of play acting. 

Mana and Mahad quickly caught up to him as he walked towards the dining hall, Mana choosing to cling to his left arm while Mahad stayed a respectful distance to his right. He was quite used to Mana’s clinginess by this point, having been in Aaru for a couple of… weeks now? Months? Time was hard to gauge in the field of reeds, as every day was mostly the same, consisting of meals together, listening to the needs of his people with his father in the throne room (mostly minor land disputes and squabbles, nowhere near the extent of the criminals and problems he had dealt with as pharaoh in the real world), and relaxing in the afternoons in the courtyard, either playing sennett or mehen or just chatting back and forth about inconsequential things. 

While the others tried to include him in their games and conversations, games didn’t hold his interest as much as they once had when he was alive, and the conversations tended to go a bit over his head because a lot of the things discussed were moments he had not taken part in, whether it was because it was the time when Seto was pharaoh or times in Aaru before he had returned to them. He knew they were just trying to catch him up with the things he had missed, but it just served as a stark reminder of how removed he was from this world. They had also grown fond of the statement, “Remember when…” about times he DID live through, and he had grown sick of the expression. Remembering was the last thing he wanted to do because it reminded him that he had chosen his memories and his place in the afterlife over staying with his partner. 

Atem tuned back into the real world when Mana tugged on his arm, looking around to realize they had made it to the dining hall when he was distracted, and Mahad was waiting patiently with the door held open. He blushed lightly, mumbling sorry as he stepped forward to walk into the room. 

He was greeted with enthusiastic good mornings as he stepped into the room, his father sitting at the head of the table with his mother sitting next to him, while the priests were lined up on either side of the table. While in life the members of royalty likely wouldn’t have been able to eat with their subjects, they had abolished that custom in the afterlife because they enjoyed eating with their friends. Atem took his seat beside his father, and ended up sitting across from Seto, who raised an eyebrow at his tardiness. If he was more like Mana(or even Yugi in a more mischievous mood), he might’ve stuck his tongue out at the other, but settled for raising an eyebrow back at the blue-eyed man. The other only rolled his eyes in response, before turning back to his conversation with Isis. 

“I apologize for my tardiness father, I was lost in my thoughts this morning until Mana came to find me.” Atem said, glancing over to see the expression on the other man’s face, and ignoring Mana’s mumbled, 

“More like lost to the clouds in the heavens.” 

He kicked her lightly under the table in retaliation, and she gasped before clasping her hands over her mouth and glaring at him over her hands. Aknamkanon remained much like he was in life, and gave no indication of his emotional response to the statement (or the antics of the two youngest) as he waved off his apology. 

“No harm done, now let us begin our meal.” Aknamkanon looked down to begin eating, and everyone followed suit, multiple conversations starting up as everyone passed around the plates of fruit and bread. Atem, having not been involved in many group conversations as a spirit of the puzzle, still had difficulty following when there was this many conversations going on around him, and thus was quickly lost. He decided to focus on eating, though that just made those around him send concerned glances over his head which he elected to ignore even though all the looks were starting to annoy him. 

So what if he was quieter than before? He didn’t have to participate in every conversation. He only looked up when Mana prodded him, glancing over with a feigned look of interest. 

“Yes, Mana?” 

“Well, prince, I was only going to ask if you remembered the time when we--”

Atem slammed a fist down on the table, startling the rest of the occupants and making him wince, but he didn’t let that stop him as he stood up. 

“I don’t want to talk about the past anymore. Please excuse me.” He bowed shallowly to his parents, his father remaining stoic while his mother, Kartek, looked greatly concerned, and turned to exit, picking up the pace as he left the room until he was running towards the main doors of the palace. He was unsure if anyone would deign to follow him, but he didn’t want to risk having to fend off their concerned questions. 

As soon as he exited the palace he slowed down, deciding to make a trip to the stables and get his horse from the stable master. His horse was a large white mare, very similar in appearance to the horse he had in life if not the very same horse, who he had nicknamed Shiro. He quickly readied her saddle and bridle, before vaulting up and leading her out of the palace courtyard. 

He figured he’d most likely be left alone if he headed to a secluded spot by the Nile, so he directed Shiro in that direction, tapping her sides with his heels to get her to speed up. He was feeling slightly guilty at his outburst by this point, but there was nothing he could do about it now, and he made a mental note to apologize to Mana at the first chance he could. 

Eventually, he made it to a spot he’d been to before in the memory world, a secluded area on the Nile with a cave nearby, and he pulled the reins to slow his horse down to a walk, before stopping her beside the cave and dismounting carefully. He patted her side lightly, allowing her to nuzzle his face for a moment, then nudged her to go take a drink from the river. 

His horse taken care of, he made his way over to the cave, settling against the wall in the doorway of it and letting his head drop into his hands with his elbows propped on his raised knees. This reminded him he was still wearing the heavy gold circlet, and he tore it off his head with one hand and threw it at the wall of the cave, making it clang and bounce into the darkness beyond before resuming his previous pose. A chilling chortle made itself heard from the darkness, and his head snapped up, eyes widening at the figure approaching him from the darkness.

“My my, his holiness is throwing quite the tantrum today, isn’t he? Won’t you need this lovely circlet before returning to those gilded halls of yours?” The white-haired man smirked, shaking the circlet teasingly before tossing it to land beside Atem. The tomb robber looked much the same, shendyt tied around his waist and the huge red robe hanging from his shoulders, though this time he wore no adornments, likely because for him to steal in the afterlife would be to gain Osiris’s attention in a horrible way. Atem scowled, leaving his crown where it lay and standing to face Bakura head on. 

“How the hell are you here, Bakura? After all you did to Yugi and his friends, and trying to help Zorc take over the world, I am surprised that Ammit did not have you for supper!” He crossed his arms over his chest, glaring fiercely at the other, who seemed apathetic to his anger. 

Bakura smirked, shrugging and replying, “I thought I would as well, but it seems the gods had other plans for me. The former denizens of Kul Elna begged them to allow me to remain, citing that I “had no choice” in helping Zorc, as he started brainwashing me at a young age. Not sure I believe that to be factual, as I think I would’ve held a grudge against the royal family ANYWAYS, but at least it kept me out of Ammit’s jaws. And so, here I am! Miss me?” 

Atem snorted, turning to stare at the wall so that he wouldn’t punch that smug expression off his scarred face. “Sure, I missed you, as much as I would miss a hole in the head. Now, what are you doing here, specifically? In a cave, by yourself, one that I just happened to travel to today? I don’t believe in coincidences.” 

“Maybe I just like lurking in shadowy places?” Bakura tilted his head to the side, smiling darkly before giving in. “I remembered this cave from my stint as dungeon master for your little trip down memory lane, and I figured you might come back to it eventually for some time to yourself, if you were as miserable here as I expected you might be. And oh look, I was right. Fancy that.” 

Atem blinked, confused almost beyond words. 

“So you’re saying you deliberately sought me out, most likely spent multiple days hiding out in this tiny cave like a vagrant, all in the hopes that I’d eventually show up?”

"...Yes.”

“Why??” 

“Do I have to have a reason?” Bakura asked snappishly, before sighing as Atem just gave him another incredulous look. 

“Fine. It sucks down here. Nothing changes and nothing interesting happens. While I’m happy that the people of Kul Elna are now at peace with the items sealed away, I grow tired of every day being the Gods. Damned. Same. Thing. Over, and over, and over again. I’m not the little boy the citizens of Kul Elna remember anymore, and I have nothing in common with them aside from a case of perpetual sticky fingers. And I can’t even do THAT, or risk bringing Osiris’s wrath down on my head. The other villagers may be content to switch to a different sort of day to day living, but I am not. I got used to modern conveniences, rich business men that don’t pay attention and are easy to pickpocket, and I even miss that godsforsaken landlord of mine. So I’m bored, and I want out. I was hoping maybe you knew of a way to get out of here? Believe me, it pains me to come to YOU, of all people, to help, but I’ve tried on my own and I’m out of options. Satisfied?”

Atem remained staring at him for a moment longer after his little rant, Bakura shifting uneasily at his continued silence. He opened his mouth to reply that he wasn’t unhappy, but he couldn’t get the blatantly untrue words out of his mouth. So, he closed it again, frowning as he started to think it through. He didn’t want to admit that the tomb robber, of all people, had a point, but he couldn’t deny that the afterlife was not what he thought it to be.

Of all the things to have in common with the thief, and it had to be the complete disconnect they had from this place and the people that lived here. They both had changed, one for the better and one for the worse, and trying to fit in here was like trying to squeeze into a tiny box, painful and ultimately impossible to do. 

However much of a point the white haired man made though, how could he trust the man not to stab him in the back as soon as they reached their goal? Atem turned to lean his back on the wall, still keeping his arms crossed, as he asked the thief that burning question. 

“Regardless of whether or not we’re both miserable here, how do I know you won’t just start wreaking havoc again as soon as you’re out of here? Or that you won’t betray me somewhere in the process, leaving me here while you make your merry way up to the surface?” 

Bakura huffed, putting his hands on his hips and glaring at him in exasperation, unintentionally making him look like Ryou as the other boy was more prone to the pose than the tomb robber. 

“Look, how would it benefit me to backstab you while we escape? It’s not like I can kill you again, seeing as we’re ALREADY DEAD, and for all I know I may have to have your help the whole way back if whatever we have to do to escape is taxing enough. I have some magic of my own, but without the ring it is nowhere near as powerful, so we would need both of us if it involves magic talent. If you’re worried I’m planning to attack you when you get back, that again wouldn’t benefit me, as the yadonushi likely won’t want anything to do with me if I mess with his friends again. And covering up a murder without magic is too much hassle regardless. Now, are you in, or not?” 

Atem looked at Bakura sideways for his last comment, responding, 

“Leaving aside the fact that you’ve _contemplated how to commit murder_ in the modern times, what you say…. does make sense. The fact that we’re agreeing on anything makes me want to stab myself in the eye- or better yet stab _you_ , but if we’re going to get out of here it may very well take both of us to make it. I suppose…” Atem sighed, ruffling a hand through his hair roughly because he couldn’t believe he was about to work with the tomb robber of all the people in all the realms, “I’m in.” 

Bakura grinned, looking like a demented child as he clapped his hands together. 

“Excellent! Now we can begin. So, your excellency, do you have any bright ideas in that starfish covered head of yours?”

Atem decided to let the starfish comment slide because they didn’t need to start bickering this early into their reluctant partnership. He stooped to pick up his crown and dust it off, hoping to stall for time as he tried to think of an answer to his question.

Truth be told, he had honestly never even thought of ways to get back to his aibou and his friends. He’d been so busy moping around the castle, he had never even thought to think of ways to rectify his situation for the better. He was sure his partner would berate him if he were here for allowing himself to fall so far down in the dumps (and Jounouchi probably would have punched him again), but he just couldn’t get past existing somewhere that his light, his reason for living, was absent from. 

Having polished the crown with the edge of his shendyt til it shone, he finally deigned to answer the thief’s question as he slid it back on over his spikes. 

“Honestly? I don’t. But I know who we can ask for help. First step though, is going to be figuring out how to sneak you into the palace.” 

Bakura looked at him like he was insane, his eyes widening in an amusing manner. “You’re joking right? Please tell me you’re joking.” Atem smirked, glad he finally had the upper hand in this partnership of theirs. 

“Not at all. What makes you think I know all the secrets of Aaru? I’ve only been here as long as you have. We’re going to have to go to the smartest people I know, and it’s going to be your turn to be glad that you can’t get killed again because I’m sure Mahad, and Mana and anyone else from the palace if they catch you there to be frank, will be ever so happy to see you.” 

Atem could not believe how pale the tomb robber got under his tanned skin, taking a slight sadistic satisfaction in seeing him scared for once. Served him right for all the times he scared his aibou and his friends. 

“On second thought, I think I’ll just---” Atem caught him by the hood of his robe as he tried to escape. 

“Nice try, thief. Let’s go.”

“Shit.”

“...Also was there a Plan B to operation, ‘Wait for the prince to just happen to visit this cave?’ Because that was a stupid plan.”

“Shut it, starfish head.”

“That had better not become a recurring thing, or I might just let Mahad turn you into a frog, scarface.”


	2. Rough Beginnings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which we have roughhousing, emotional conversations, and a mother who knows all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to chapter two! I'm thinking I'm going to try updating bi-weekly, or close to it, from now on. I almost made it this time, but I wanted to make absolutely sure it was ready before I posted it x'D I really should have named this fic the adventures of scarface and starfish head, honestly.... If this turns into a series that may be the series title! =D Haha, hope you guys enjoy!!

First step in Plan “Get the thief into the palace” was making the white haired man a bit less... conspicuous. Atem could not comprehend how the thief had managed to sneak in _anywhere_ wearing a bright red robe, but it definitely wouldn’t work now that everyone in the palace had seen him in it. Now he just had to actually convince the other man of how foolish it would be to leave the damn thing on.  
  


"First things first, Bakura. We need to make you look less… you." He gestured expansively towards the other man's wardrobe. "So you're going to have to take off that robe."

  
“Hm, how abooout, no.” Bakura sneered, holding the edges of his robe tightly. "I'm not one of your empty headed subjects, I don't take orders from _you."_

  
Atem sighed, putting a hand to his head in exasperation. He knew the idiot wouldn't listen.   
  


“How the hell do you plan to sneak past anyone to get into the palace when you’re wearing a big red neon sign that says “Thief King Bakura” on it?”   
  


“Simple. I’ll just hide behind your ridiculous hair.” Bakura ducked beneath a swipe for his jacket, backing away from the shorter man quickly. “Back _off_ , starfish head! I _like_ this robe and I intend to keep wearing it!” 

  
“You can put the stupid thing back on when we get there! It’s not like you need to make a fashion statement!” Atem growled, lunging forward and grabbing one edge of the jacket. The thief tried to twist away from the shorter man, but that just gave him leverage to pull the robe off. With a final tug, Atem managed to get the jacket off the thief, knocking him to the ground and landing on his own ass in the process. Whooping in triumph, he didn't give the other a chance to recover and quickly scrambled up, attempting to sprint to his horse so that he could shove the infernal thing in his saddle bags. This was sadly thwarted when the white haired idiot tackled him from behind, knocking him face first into the dirt. 

  
"Get _off_ me, scarface! It won't hurt anything to leave the damn thing off for a while, other than maybe your vanity!" Atem spit out a clump of dirt, holding the robe out away from the other man as he struggled to get loose.  
  


"I resent that remark! My damned yadonushi is the vain one, he was always primping in front of mirrors and store windows!" Bakura growled back, trying to use his longer arms to grab his precious robe back but Atem was too quick for him.   
  


"I think you mean that you _resemble_ that remark. Where else would Ryou have gotten the impulse from?" He finally resorted to elbowing the thief in the gut, making him wheeze and roll off him. Atem jumped up quickly, finally getting to Shiro so that he could put the robe in his saddlebag. The insufferable drama queen sulked behind him, still laying on the ground where Atem had left him as if he had been hurt worse than just a possible bruise or scrape. Honestly the thief could have fought with a lot more dirty tricks, and probably would have if he was still possessed by Zorc, so even this moment was one indicator that this Bakura was not the one he had known all these years. Honestly the fight almost seemed… playful? He wasn’t sure how he felt about this turn of events, so he put it out of his mind, for now.   
  


Without the robe, the thief looked a lot smaller, and was left wearing his shendyt and a lighter weight hooded robe. This would be useful to hide his face, but Atem was worried his hair would fall forward and give him away. There weren't many people with white hair in the afterlife, other than Kisara(who kind of traveled back and forth from here to the monster realm so that she could visit Seto when he played her card), and he was quite obviously not a woman. He thought he might have something in his bag that Bakura could use to pull his hair back out of the way, so he dug through his saddlebag, triumphantly coming up with a strip of leather chord.   
  


"Here, tie your hair back and put your hood up, that should be enough to conceal your identity. They'll just think you're trying to protect yourself from the sun." He threw the strip at Bakura, snorting as it landed on his face.   
  


Bakura snatched it off his face and sat up, begrudgingly tying his hair back as he said, "I'd better not hear one word about how much this makes me look like a girl from you, brat-prince."   
  


Atem shrugged, smirking over at the other before he put his foot in Shiro's stirrup to jump on his horse. He honestly just thought the hairstyle made him look younger and less wild than he actually was, but he couldn’t stop himself from continuing to give the thief a hard time. He was amazed at how bickering with Bakura made him feel so much more like himself again, though he was _definitely not_ telling the thief that, or else his ego may swell to disastrous levels.   
  


"Well if the sandal fits…" Not giving the thief a chance to answer, he shook the reins to make her step forward until she was standing next to Bakura, and he reached down to offer the white haired man a hand up. "Come on, let's get going. We don't want to wait til dark or they'll be suspicious of why it took me so long to return."   
  


Bakura glared at his hand suspiciously for a moment, as if expecting a trick, before using it to haul himself up behind the shorter man. Bakura had traveled on foot to the spot by the Nile, he had grumpily explained, since spirits in Aaru couldn’t get tired and wouldn’t die of hunger or thirst. Atem privately thought that walking that far from Kul Elna on foot was idiotic, but then again he thought most things that the other man did were stupid, so he supposed it was just par for the course. He wasn’t at all comfortable with sharing a saddle with his rival-turned-reluctant-partner-in-crime, but he wasn’t walking back to the palace when he had the ability to ride back, and he wasn’t cruel enough to leave the other to walk back on his own.   
  


“Of all things, I can’t believe I’m riding bitch behind my arch nemesis. This trip had better be worth the indignity.” Bakura grumbled, pulling his hood over his head and then reluctantly putting his hands on the prince’s waist so that he wouldn’t fall off. Atem winced, hating the situation just as much as Bakura, before he coaxed Shiro into a gallop.  
  


~~YMxA~~RBxTKB~~  
  


They made good time back to the city, and then separated because it was too suspicious for them to ride into the palace courtyard on the same horse when Atem had left the palace alone. The thief had slunk into the darkness of a nearby alley, and was going to meet back up with the tri-colored teen in his chambers later that day. Atem was worried the dumbass was going to get himself caught, but he couldn’t afford to second guess him constantly if they were going to make this partnership work. If he did get caught, he’d just have to do some fast talking to keep the others from attacking or otherwise maiming him. If they were willing to listen, that is.   
  


Shaking off his doubts, Atem started forward again, guiding Shiro back through the entrance to the palace and leading her back to the stables so that she could rest. Once he made it to the stables, he jumped down and handed her off to the stable hand to take care of, and then left to face the mess he had made when he left the palace in a huff that morning. This… was not going to be pretty.   
  


The halls seemed pretty empty when he entered the main doors, and he glanced around suspiciously, surprised no one was standing there waiting to yell at him or question him about his behavior that morning. Maybe they were going to let it go…? He didn’t hold out too much hope as he made his way through the halls, looking for Mahad and Mana so he could at least fix things with them. He figured they were probably in the magician’s study, which was on the far side of the palace.   
  


As luck would have it, they were both there, though Mana huffed and turned her back on him as soon as she saw him, crossing her arms over her chest. Definitely not a good sign. He sighed, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly as Mahad turned to look at him. The magician didn’t look very pleased with him either, probably because he had upset his apprentice, and that just made Atem feel worse.  
  


Deciding to just bite the bullet, he bowed deeply to both of them as a sign of respectful apology, not really registering that he was mimicking another habit of his aibou, and said,   
  


“I deeply regret hurting your feelings this morning Mana, and you Mahad. I was not myself, and really have not been since I arrived in the afterlife. I let my despair over losing my partner take over, and I couldn't get past it. I know it’s no excuse for my behavior, but I believe that you deserve an explanation. Can you bring yourselves to forgive me?”   
  


Mahad, possibly realizing how serious the gesture was considering his time in the real world as the Dark Magician or possibly just hearing the sincerity in his voice, smiled and nodded, but Mana remained facing away for a moment longer, before sighing with her whole body and dropping her hands to her sides. She twirled to face him, revealing watery eyes, before she ran over and hugged him tightly. Atem oofed, slightly surprised and barely straightening up in time for her to barrel into him, before hesitantly wrapping his arms around her.   
  


“Why couldn’t you just admit that you were feeling this way? We’ve known all along that you’ve been struggling, would it kill you to ask for help for once?” She hit him in the shoulder, making him flinch, before burrowing back into his chest, mumbling, “Stupid prince. Just let us in, ok?”   
  


Atem sighed, smiling fondly down at her brunette head, and admitted privately to himself that she had a point. Yugi had taught him that he didn’t have to do everything on his own, and he had almost forgotten the lesson altogether in his despair. He wouldn’t allow himself to forget again.   
  


“I will, Mana. Starting now, if you still wish to help.”  
  


Mana huffed, finally backing away and scrubbing at her eyes with the side of her arm to remove the traces of tears from her face.   
  


“Of course we’ll help! What do you need from us, prince?” She said with determination, and Mahad stepped forward as well to join their conversation. They listened attentively as Atem explained that he wanted to find a way to leave the afterlife and regain his own body (though he left out the thief king’s involvement, for now) because he wasn’t ready to be away from his partner and his friends from the modern times. He assured them that it wasn’t because he didn’t care for the people here, but that he just wasn’t ready for eternal rest yet.   
  


When he was finished speaking, Mahad had a thoughtful look on his face, and Mana seemed sad but still determined to help. The two turned to look at each other, nodded, and immediately moved for the books along the back wall. Mahad seemed to know exactly which book he wanted to start with, and turned to say over his shoulder as he slid the book from its place,   
  


“It will take me a lot of research, for it has been many a year since I thought about the technical aspects of the afterlife. However, I am certain that I-” He winced as Mana stabbed him with the corner of a book she was holding, pointedly, “-I mean _we_ can find some way to get you back to Domino. But Atem, if we do this, it is certain to be a one way trip, and I don’t know if the gods would ever allow you to return to this afterlife. Are you positive this is what you want?”   
  


Atem nodded, his face regaining some of its former confidence as he replied, “More certain than I have ever been about anything, though I will miss all of you when I go. Thank you, to both of you. I’ve never been as good at the regular aspects of magic as I was at the shadow magics, but if you need me to research as well…”   
  


Mana waved him off dismissively, her one book having turned into a teetering pile of books that hovered beside her when Atem hadn’t been paying attention, and then gestured to the pile to make it land on one of the tables with a thud. This almost caused the whole thing to become an avalanche, but a quick move from Mahad had the stack righting itself with no damage to anything. Mahad glared at her, but she ignored his stare.   
  


“Go on Prince, you’d just get underfoot in here. I know how bored you get reading the old tomes, you’ve always much preferred learning by doing than reading. I still remember how many times you ditched our lessons to go swimming in the Nile!” she giggled a bit, though her levity seemed slightly forced, plopping down on top of the table and grabbing one of the books from the pile to start reading. Mahad tapped the top of her head lightly with his book, waiting until she looked up at him with a pout to speak up.   
  


“You don’t have room to talk about anyone ditching lessons, you ran off with him many times to do that exact thing!” Mahad sighed, shaking his head in fond exasperation while Mana objected with a sharp humph. His eyes softened as he looked back at the prince, smiling lightly at him. “She is right though, you would start fidgeting within 20 minutes. Go on, we’ll let you know as soon as we have anything substantial. Besides, you need to let the others know your plans, you don’t want to blindside them with it the day you decide to leave.”   
  


Atem winced, he hadn’t thought that far ahead. His parents were going to either be furious or devastated, and he didn’t really want to deal with either extreme. He wasn’t sure how the priests were going to react, Karim and Shada probably wouldn’t particularly care other than wishing him well because they’d never seen him as any more than their pharaoh, Isis probably already knew he wanted to go because while she didn’t have the tauk anymore she still had an abnormally strong ability for foresight, Shimon would probably land in the furious or devastated camp, and Seto was probably going to strangle him because then they’d be bugging _him_ to take the throne. At least Aknadin hadn’t made it to Aaru due to his sins in life, but that still left the possible disapproval of the others. But he might just be thinking negatively? He’d have to cross that bridge when he got there, he supposed.   
  


“And with that daunting prospect, I think I’ll take my leave. I’ll see you two later.” He waved over his shoulder, stepping towards the door to exit the magician’s chambers before Mahad could insist he call a meeting and tell them now. He was definitely not ready to face all of them at once.   
  


“Atem, wait!” He stopped immediately, surprised by Mana’s use of his name when she usually stuck to calling him prince, turning only to once again end up with arms full of Mana. She wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her head in his shoulder to hide the tears in her eyes. “Don’t forget us, ok? No matter what, always remember you have a family that cares about you. You’re like my big brother, and I wish there was a way you could still be with us and be happy. But since I want that for you, and you won’t be if you stay here, I’m going to help you. But please, don’t forget us, Atem.”   
  


Hating the pain he was causing, he rubbed her back soothingly, laying his head down on top of hers. He too, had always seen the other two as siblings, and it was going to nearly break his heart to leave them again. They had grown up together since they were the only children in the palace(because at the time Seto had already been taken away by his mother), and they were two of the people he loved most in Aaru. But his heart was still left behind in the living world, and until he returned to it he would never be whole. So as much as it hurt him to leave, there was no way he could stay without making him and everyone around him miserable. He couldn’t stay, but he could do as Mana asked of him.   
  


“I could never forget my family, not willingly, and this time there’s no evil bastard to cause me to forget you. So believe me when I say this, I will never forget you two, and I will keep you both close to my heart.” He heard a suspicious sniffle, and looked up to see Mahad trying his best not to cry himself. Grinning slightly, he beckoned to Mahad to come closer. “Come on, you know you want in on this hug too.”   
  


Mahad sheepishly scrubbed under his eyes, trying in vain to cover that he’d been crying, before giving in and stepping forward to wrap long arms around both of them. It took time for the tears to stop, and when they did, Atem stepped back slowly, kissing Mana on the cheek and then teasingly doing the same to Mahad just to make him blush before finally leaving to carry on with his plans for the rest of the day.   
  


He still had to check to see if the thief had made it into the palace, and he really didn’t want to deal with anyone before then. Bakura would be enough of a headache on his own, especially since Atem had left his robe in the saddle bag in the stables. He probably wouldn’t be too pleased with that, actually. Better to keep it to himself and hope the thief doesn’t ask. He snorted. _Fat chance of that._ He sighed, wondering what chaos he might encounter when he opened the doors to his chambers. He hadn’t seen any servants gossiping in the halls, so it was likely the thief had managed to remain undetected, for now.   
  


Upon reaching the doors to his rooms, he eased the door open slowly, not wanting anyone to get a glimpse inside if the thief was there, and slipped into the room, shutting the door behind him carefully. He was surprised to find that Bakura didn’t seem to be present, though he checked every room to be sure. Upon re-entering the main section of his chambers, he sighed, realizing that his stall tactic had failed. The thief must be waiting for the cover of night to make his way into the palace, or he had other things he had to sort out before he met him there. Regardless, it put a scowl on his face as he exited his rooms once more because that meant he had to suck it up and go confront his parents about his plans, and he was _definitely_ not looking forward to that conversation.   
  


His parents weren’t the type to get hysterical or blow up, but he could still remember the coolly disappointed looks his father would give him when he would make his aforementioned trips(escapes) down to the Nile instead of going to his lessons. He did not know as much about his mother’s reaction to situations, since she had died when he was very young and he barely had any memories of her(even with his memories returned), but he couldn’t imagine that she would be very happy to lose her only son again, even if it was so that he could finish out his natural lifetime.   
  


While he was lost in thought, his feet had brought him to stand outside of their chamber doors, and he was almost scared to knock and have this conversation with them. Put him in front of an opponent and he oozed confidence, but when it came to personal conversations with people he loved his words would dry up like the sands that made up his homeland.   
  


At least there were no guards around to laugh at his hesitation. The thought of anyone catching him being so indecisive finally galvanized him into action, so he straightened his shoulders, took a deep breath, and finally knocked on those imposing doors. A soft voice called for him to enter, so he pushed the doors open carefully, peeking around the edge to see who was present. Upon seeing his mother sitting alone, stretched out on a chaise lounge, he let out his held breath in relief, believing that it would be easier to speak to them one at a time.   
  


Kartek looked relieved to see him, and she beckoned to him with a bejeweled hand as she sat up, patting the seat beside her once she had made room for him in a silent request for him to join her. He took the invitation, moving closer and sitting beside her gingerly. He was aware that he probably looked stiff as a board, but as he couldn’t get himself to relax at all he would just have to deal with the fact that all his emotions were currently blaring out loudly and telling the world that he was uncomfortable.   
  


Kartek, Ra bless her, was giving him the time to gather his thoughts, and had her hands demurely folded in her lap as she waited for him to speak. He studied her out of the corner of his eyes as he tried to figure out how to begin, noting that she had chosen to braid her long hair into one long plait trailing down her shoulder, and she wore only her typical sheath dress and sandals with the rings on her hands being the only jewelry she currently wore. His mother was from a lesser branch of nobility, or so he’d been told growing up, so she was more attuned to being comfortable than being elaborately dressed all the time.   
  


In his time in the afterlife so far, he had not been very comfortable interacting with his mother, and thus had not paid attention to how much he resembled her, sharing her black and red locks of hair, though hers were much tamer, and her more delicate build (though that last part was more to his chagrin because it left him at 5 feet tall). It was a wonder his father had been able to even look at him after she died when he took after her so strongly. The only features he had really gotten from his father were his crimson eyes and his sharp facial structure.   
  


Though he was no closer to arranging his thoughts coherently(mostly because he had gotten himself sidetracked), he finally grew sick of the silence, and he cleared his throat to begin explaining. Before he could start speaking, however, his mother spoke up.   
  


“You’re planning to leave, aren’t you?”   
  
Atem’s jaw dropped, his eyes widening in disbelief. How…?  
  


Kartek tilted her head, a slightly amused smile lingering on her lips.   
  


“You may have been too young to remember much of me, which is something I regret to this day, but I'm your mother and I still know you, sa-mery. I’ve seen you going through the motions, and I can tell when you’re miserable.” Kartek reached up, closing his jaw with a finger and gently brushing blond bangs away from his face so that she could meet his eyes with her own dark eyes. “Regardless of how nervous you currently are, today is the first day I’ve seen you _hopeful._ Was I wrong about your intentions?”   
  


Atem smiled wryly, shaking his head in negation. First Mana and Mahad had seen right through him, and now the mother he barely knew? Even Bakura had guessed at his emotional state, or else the man would never have come searching for him. He had never been this transparent before, even as a disembodied spirit, and he didn’t know if the return of his own body(or the closest thing to it, considering this was the afterlife) was one factor working against him, or if it was the loss of his partner that caused his emotions to shine through so strongly. When he had been with Yugi, he had to remain strong for his sake, to protect the one who mattered most to him, and that didn't leave room for him to show any weaknesses.   
  


“No, you’ve guessed correctly. You don’t seem as upset as I guessed you might be…?” He hinted, leaning back on his hands as he awaited her response. Kartek frowned, tapping her fingers on her knee as she paused for thought. When she did speak, she spoke haltingly, as if trying to navigate rough terrain.   
  


“It’s less that I’m not upset and more that… I want to see you happy. I’ve waited thousands of years to see you again, but the boy who returned to me was much sadder and diminished than the sunshine child that I remember. And it’s not that I’m unhappy to see you, or disappointed in who returned, but I know there’s something more that you need to be happy again. If returning to the surface world is what you need to be happy, then I support your decision, and I will fight tooth and nail for you to be able to return here, at the natural conclusion to your life.” Her expression turned sly, and she ruffled Atem’s unruly spikes. “And if you just so happen to have a tag-along when you return, they will be just as welcome here with us. I assume that tag-along may be one reason you want to go…?”   
  


Atem blushed to his ears, batting his mother’s hands away from his hair as she chuckled merrily beside him. How did she even do that?? How did she know every stray thought that flew through his mind? It was as if she were the one who was the one who had control of the millennium eye instead of his traitorous uncle. He now knew how Yugi felt whenever his mom used her motherly perception on him, knowing exactly when he was slacking off on schoolwork to play games (though Atem thought the sock concentration game Yugi had played one morning was ridiculously cute…) and when something was bothering him, whether it be at school or something to do with all their rough adventures. Though this was his first experience with a mother’s intuition, he was grateful for it, and her understanding, because it made explaining things a lot simpler.   
  


“Yes, you’ve guessed it all correctly. I left my light behind in the living world, a teenager by the name of Yugi. He’s kind, compassionate, and stronger than anyone else I know. It was his kind heart that drew me out of the darkness, and…” He looked down at his lap, fiddling with the hem of his shendyt shyly. “I think I’ve been in love with him since the beginning, though I didn’t recognize the feeling until much later.”   
  


Kartek smiled gently at him, placing a hand on his shoulder and squeezing lightly.   
  


“And that is why I’m not going to stand in your way. I would move heaven and earth for your father and you, and if this boy is your heart then I’m sure you’d do the same for him. I’ll deal with your father, he’ll definitely be a lot less… hmmm, understanding about this than I am. But the way I’m thinking of it, is as goodbye for now, not forever. And I’ll make sure he understands that.”   
  


Feeling relieved that he’d have one less person that he’d have to confront, Atem smiled at his mother, reaching up to his shoulder to clasp her hand in his for a moment.  
  


“Thank you for understanding, I really appreciate it, okaa-sama.” Releasing her hand he stood up, bowing to her respectfully, which she mimicked with that understanding smile still on her face, before turning to leave. As he left the room and started down the hallway, he heard the door open again behind him, and he glanced over his shoulder to see his father disappearing into their rooms. Not wanting to be nearby when that explosion happened, he picked up the pace, heading for his rooms to recharge from the emotional conversations he’d endured. Hopefully the white haired idiot would be gracious enough to give him some space if he’d arrived by this point, though he didn’t hold out too much hope for that. It was Bakura, after all. Maybe he ought to go grab the thief’s robe out of the saddlebags as a peace offering… 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's some translations for you guys! I got them from an ancient Egyptian translation site, and cross referenced the meanings with a couple of other sites, but if anything is still slightly off I apologize.
> 
> Kartek: spark-holder (thought this was fitting because Atem is a name related to the sun god, so... also I just thought it was pretty xD)
> 
> sa: son
> 
> -mery: (suffix) beloved


	3. A Reluctant Slumber Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which we have theft, a reluctant sleepover, and letting the proverbial cat out of the bag ;)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Sorry this chapter took a bit longer; the boys were fighting me on what they wanted to say xD I Hope you guys enjoy this one!

After making a detour to the stables to retrieve Bakura's robe (which was undamaged, thankfully, otherwise the thief might have made a valiant effort to kill him), Atem started walking back to his chambers for the second time that day. He intentionally took paths that would avoid heavy traffic areas because he was not ready to confront the rest of the priests, especially since he wouldn’t be able to explain the robe he had bundled under his arms. That would definitely be a …. memorable conversation. He snorted as he tried to imagine what he would say if someone caught him carrying the robe around. _  
__  
_ Considering how recognizable Bakura’s robe was, there was no way he would be able to come up with anything that would be even remotely believable if someone put him on the spot, he was a horrible liar when it came to people who knew him well. When he was still a spirit, he’d never been able to get anything past Yugi, the boy had always known when he was upset or when he was trying to hide something important. It was one thing he truly missed about the other, that knowledge of exactly who he was inside, and not the persona he wore like a shroud. 

The sun had been setting when he made his trip to the stables, so it was reasonable to assume that the thief would either already be in his chambers or making his way there. Warily, he opened the doors and slipped inside the darkening room, pushing the door shut behind him with the heel of his foot. After his eyes adjusted to the darkness, he noticed that a certain asshole thief had decided to make himself comfortable, and had taken over his bed. Said thief was laying flat on his back, his arms crossed behind his head to prop his head up, with one leg crossed over the other and swinging to an unheard beat. He also appeared to be wearing every bit of Atem’s spare jewelry. 

Atem’s eye twitched, and he took a deep breath to keep from yelling at the other, not wanting to alert the whole palace that the idiot was in his room. Throwing the thief’s robe carelessly onto a nearby chair, he stalked over to the side of the bed, crossed his arms over his chest, and cleared his throat pointedly. When the other man only bothered to look up at him with one eye, his patience snapped and he decided that maturity was overrated, pushing the other man off the bed unceremoniously.

Obviously the other man had not been expecting that, as his eyes only widened in surprise as he fell, letting out a quiet “oomph” as he hit the ground. Atem smirked, glad to have the upper hand once again, and sat down on the edge of the bed to start taking off his gold finery. The white haired idiot’s glaring face popped up over the edge of the other side of the bed, and Atem very pointedly removed a gold earring in response to the thief’s stare. Rolling his eyes expansively, with a huff of irritation Bakura stood up and stomped over to the side table to return the gold he had pilfered to it’s storage container. Satisfied that his point had been made, Atem finally deigned to speak to the white haired man. 

“Did you have any trouble sneaking into the palace?” he said as he continued removing his jewelry, setting it down carefully on a side table beside his bed. Bakura looked over his shoulder, raising an eyebrow in exaggerated disbelief. 

“Did I, King of Thieves, have trouble sneaking into a palace that barely has any guards, seeing as we’re all already  _ dead _ and their job position is now merely a formality? Don’t make me laugh.” Bakura took off the last of the stolen jewelry, placing it in the box and then slamming the lid shut as one final “fuck you”. 

“A simple yes or no would have sufficed.” Atem grumbled, taking off his circlet and setting it with the other items. Usually, he would put everything away immediately, but that would put him back in range with the thief, and he was too mentally exhausted for another round of fisticuffs. Now that he was less irritated at the thief, he was wondering where he would have the other man sleep considering there was only one bed. While the dead didn’t necessarily need to sleep, the days would be rather long if one tried to stay up all day and all night. There was a couch much like the one in his mother’s room near his bed, but it was rather short and would not be long enough for the thief king’s lanky frame. As much as he hated it, if he was going to be a good host, he might be doomed to sharing the bed he had  _ just _ pushed the thief king off. Joy. “Hey Bakura-” 

“If you’re about to offer to share the bed, save it, I’ll be perfectly fine sleeping on the floor, my robe will keep me warm enough.” Bakura interrupted, much to Atem’s continued annoyance, striding over to snatch his robe from the chair Atem had abandoned it on. “I was only on your bed to annoy you, which I’m sure you’re aware of, it’s about as hard as the floor anyways. Damn do I miss modern conveniences….”

The thief’s words trailed off into grumbles as he found a spot to stretch out on the floor, and Atem couldn’t argue with him on this final point, as he privately agreed that all the furniture in the afterlife was sorely lacking. One would think that a place that was supposed to be the ideal of their former life on earth would have more comfortable accommodations. He watched as the man elected to lie down facing the door on the right side of the bed, though this position did give him slight pause as it implied that the thief was more worried about someone coming at him from the door than from behind. Everything the thief did seemed to contradict itself, he was snappy and irritable and would act like he didn't want to work with Atem at all, but would do what Atem asked (or hinted at) eventually, and trusted him enough to ride a horse with him and put his back to him when he was getting ready to sleep. He didn't understand Bakura at all. 

  
“What are you staring at, idiot?” Bakura grumbled, glaring over his shoulder with one eye. Atem startled, unaware that he’d spaced out for a long enough period for the thief to notice, before shrugging and looking away.    
  


“Just thinking. You’re… different from what I remember, in both lifetimes.”   
  
Bakura snorted, rolling over to lay on his back with his hands behind his head once again. 

  
“That’s because I don’t have dragon-dick riding around in the back of my skull anymore. You’ve never known me without his influence.” Bakura said matter-of-factly (making Atem snort at the rude reference to Zorc) before huffing out an annoyed breath as his fringe fell in his eyes. He had pulled out the hair tie at some point after separating from Atem, but Atem could see that the thief still had the leather strip with him, tied around his wrist like a bracelet.

“So you  _ were _ being influenced by Zorc all these years?” Atem asked, electing to slide back and sit against the wall behind his bed frame. He had the feeling they weren’t going to do much actual sleeping tonight. 

“...the villagers from Kul Elna… they weren’t entirely wrong when they were pleading with the gods for my pardon.” Bakura admitted reluctantly, sitting up as well and glaring at the ground beside him. He hesitated, before crossing his arms and continuing to speak, apparently making the conscious choice to elaborate. “I won’t say that everything I did was his fault, as it was my desire for vengeance that started everything, but he definitely fueled the fire. If there was ever a way that I could have stopped my quest for vengeance and moved on from the tragedy, I’ll never know because he was always there, whispering in my ear and making sure that I could never forget my rage.” 

Hearing the thief admit that he was at fault along with Zorc was shocking to the tri-colored teen, as he had never heard an admission of guilt from the other man before today. Throughout their struggles, the other man had always been viciously confident that he was in the right, that he was the only injured party in their lifelong clash. But seeing this man sitting here, deliberately choosing to share his experiences, he now knew for certain that the other was changing from the person he once knew. Regardless of that, Atem knew there was something he had to say to the lost, lonely boy who was left behind in the wake of Kul Elna's massacre, who lost his family, his home, and the life that he would have lived all in one fell swoop. 

"I'm sorry." 

Gray eyes widened as they turned to stare disbelievingly at the tricoloured teen. 

"You what?"

"I'm sorry," Atem repeated, crimson eyes gazing unerringly back at the other man, giving him the respect of an honest apology. "Back when we were alive, I should have listened to you when you came to the palace looking to get justice for Kul Elna, instead of continuing with my blind faith that my family couldn't be a part of something so horrifying. With Zorc's influence it may not have made a difference at the time… but maybe it would have given him less ammunition to use to control you. So, I apologize, for not giving you the opportunity to air your grievances with the royal family and to get the closure you needed.” Atem sighed, looking down with a furrowed brow. “At least justice was finally served, with Aknadin failing to pass the scales of Ma'at. If anyone deserved to be eaten by Ammit, it was most certainly him, because he willingly went through with the attack on Kul Elna without being influenced by Zorc."

Other than his snorted agreement at Aknadin’s fate, the thief seemed to be struck speechless. Atem waited patiently, biting his lower lip as the silence dragged on. Perhaps he should have also apologized on their behalf…? Close to breaking the silence himself in a fit of nerves, he took a breath to speak up once more, but was halted by the white-haired man raising a hand to stop him in his tracks. Deflated, Atem went back to biting his lip as Bakura lowered his hand back to its prior spot. Finally, the thief looked up from under his fringe.

"Apology accepted." He muttered, turning away after he spoke and blowing his bangs out of his eyes distractedly. Atem blinked owlishly.

"Just like that?" 

"Just like that. I've long since realized you, individually, were not at fault for their deaths, considering you were barely older than I was when it happened, but I wasn't able to think clearly about it until Zorc was gone. I didn’t need an apology from  _ you _ , however…" Bakura grimaced, looking like he had bit into a sour lemon, before sighing and begrudgingly continuing. "I do appreciate you… taking the time to apologize." 

Despite the words sounding like they were dragged out of him against his will, Atem felt like the man was being sincere. Apparently, they were both incapable of handling emotional conversations gracefully. Atem inclined his head to acknowledge the other’s words, smiling slightly, and then decided a change of subject was in order.

He knew there had to be more to Bakura’s decision to return to the surface world than just missing modern conveniences and easy targets, and while the thief seemed to be in a mood to share he wanted to understand his motivations a bit better. While he was hopeful that Bakura was truly a less despicable person than he was before, he was still wary of trusting the other man without more knowledge of who he is now and what his ultimate goal was for this venture.

“You mentioned earlier, when we were standing inside that cave, that you missed Ryou. Did you mean that?” Atem murmured, fiddling with a corner of the sheet on his bed and wishing that there was some game on hand that he could direct his focus towards. What he wouldn’t give for a deck of cards to break up some of the awkwardness! 

For his question, he got another squinty-eyed suspicious look from the other teen, though apparently he decided the question was innocuous enough as he eventually responded.

“I did.” 

Rolling his eyes at the eloquent response, Atem waved his hand to get the other man to elaborate on the subject, which earned him another annoyed noise from the white haired man. 

“What else do you want me to say? That losing him was like losing a limb or some other tripe like that? Because it wasn’t like that.” He huffed, uncrossing his arms and laying his hands flat behind him to prop himself up. “Honestly… in the times when I was more aware of things other than my schemes, I would watch him as he went about his life. He was quiet and could be timid as a rabbit sometimes, but then there were those times when he wasn’t, where he would stand up to me or others in defense of his friends, and I… I admired that, all right?” He glared up at the ceiling, appearing sullen about being ‘forced’ to bear his soul to his former enemy. Atem resisted the urge to snicker, even though he had never seen the other man act more like the teenager he actually was, and spoke up once he regained his composure. 

“So he did have some qualities that you found admirable then?” he asked leadingly, spinning to sit on the edge of the bed and leaning closer to give the man his full attention. Bakura rolled his eyes. 

“Ra save me from nosy, emotional pharaohs… yes there were some other things I admired about the rabbit. He was artistic, you know he made all those figurines on his own for the tabletop campaigns, he was smarter than most gave him credit for, and he… never gave up on trying to get me to realize that what I was doing was wrong. He knew, you know?” he said abruptly, jumping up and starting to pace agitatedly, causing Atem’s eyes to widen at the sudden movement. 

“All about what had happened with Kul Elna. I told him one night, trying to make him understand why I was so dead set on getting my revenge, and he in turn tried to help me realize that you weren’t the one at fault for what happened. I shut him down, couldn’t do anything else with Zorc in the wings, but what he said stuck with me. I…” Bakura pursed his lips, momentarily stalling to think before he resumed pacing. “I regret the way I treated him. Everyone he ever cared about before I entered the picture ended up abandoning him in one way or another, and I could’ve been someone who actually cared enough to stick around. I want to go back, so that I’m not just one more person who has left him behind.” Bakura stopped pacing, spinning to face Atem with blazing eyes. “If we’re going to have this “heart to heart” nonsense, what do  _ you _ miss about your midget?” 

“Don’t call him that,” Atem warned, glaring slightly prior to focusing on the question at hand. Letting the name calling go with just a warning(as he suspected it was a losing battle), Atem tapped his chin, trying to pair down everything he missed about Yugi into a few sentences. 

“What I miss about Yugi… is his kindness, and his strength of heart most of all. He was compassionate towards all, even to people like who you and Kaiba were at first, and being with him made me want to be a better person. He was also mischievous sometimes, kind of sneakily because he has such an innocent face that it makes it hard to tell when he’s plotting something, like the time he set up a fake ‘date’ with Anzu to cheer me up. I did manage to get him back for that, pushing him out when Jounouchi was questioning us about the “heart of the underdog” card….” Atem grinned at the memory, getting slightly sidetracked and glancing over to see how Bakura was taking his rambling. Despite the look of feigned boredom on the thief’s face (who had resumed sitting on the floor, though this time crossed-legged), the man couldn’t hide the interest in his eyes, and since he hadn’t interrupted yet Atem felt it was safe to continue. “I think the moment I realized how much he meant to me… was after the fire, when aibou almost died trying to put the puzzle back together. He risked his life just so that he could see me again, and that was it. I was... his.” 

Having revealed a bit more than he intended, Atem coughed into his hand as a blush spread across his face like wildfire. Looking vaguely constipated at all of the emotional conversation, Bakura nevertheless burst into cackles when he spotted the blush on the tri-colored teen’s face. Atem glared at the other half-heartedly, but he couldn’t completely begrudge the other his amusement. To be fair, he had almost laughed at the thief earlier. As his laughter died down, the thief swiped his hand through the air cuttingly. 

“All right! That’s enough girly gossiping for one night.  _ I’m _ going to sleep, whether you decide to do so or not is your business. Night, starfish head.” With that, the thief laid down again, pulling his robe up over him and closing his eyes pointedly. Rolling his eyes at the dramatics, Atem laid down as well, rolling to face the balcony with his back to the thief. 

“Good night, scarface.” 

\---YMxA---RBxTKB----

" _ You. _ "

_ Crash! _

“Unhand me you pompous fucking asshole, I’m going to rip that superior look right off your face, you motherfucking son of a godsdamned traitorous selfish bastard--”

Waking up to loud noises and someone cursing up a storm was not something he enjoyed in the  _ slightest.  _ Cracking open one eye, he turned to see what had the thief so agitated, almost falling off the bed in his haste to get up when he saw that Priest Seto was the cause of the stream of curses. The taller man had Bakura’s hands behind his back, holding both wrists with one hand while the other had a fistful of white hair. Perhaps he knew that the foul-mouthed man was vain about his hair; it definitely seemed to be an effective way to get the man to stop moving. Nothing could stop  _ that mouth _ though. 

“Let him go Seto, I invited him here!” Atem shouted, crossing his arms and throwing his best disapproving look at his head priest’s face. Releasing Bakura in his shock, his cousin threw back a sharply incredulous look that made his resemblance to a certain billionaire all the more clear. The thief rubbed the back of his head sullenly, stepping as far away from the priest as humanly possible as soon as he was free.

"You what?" 

"He has my permission to be here," Atem reiterated, uncrossing his arms and moving closer to Bakura so that he would be close enough to intervene if the blue eyed man tried something again. As he did, he finally noticed that Mana was also in the room, standing near the doors with wide eyes and a gaping mouth. Beckoning her to come closer, he continued speaking. "More pressingly, what are both of you doing in my chambers this early in the morning?" 

Mana cringed, wringing her hands as she stepped forward to join them. 

"Leaving aside the fact that a certain murderous jerk is here…” She paused significantly, glaring at Bakura though her stare was no more intimidating than that of a wet kitten, before turning back to Atem and continuing in a more sheepish tone, “That would be my fault, sort of. Mine and Mahad's, that is. We were pulling an all nighter and Seto caught us in the middle of our research. Mahad and I were theorizing out loud about how to get you back, you know, and he said something along the lines of, 'what in ra's name are you two talking about? The pharaoh is planning WHAT?!'" Mana croaked, in a convincingly snide tone but with a noticeably higher tone because she couldn't  _ quite _ lower her voice enough, and Atem snorted at the impression of the irate priest. Seto did not look impressed. At all. "And when we said he'd have to ask you because it wasn't our decision to tell, he came storming over here before we could stop him! I ran after him, Mahad is probably somewhere behind me…" she trailed off, peeking back at the door as the aforementioned man finally appeared, huffing and puffing heavily as he entered the doorway. 

On seeing everyone, especially considering a particular thief was present, his eyes narrowed sharply, and he said with a deceptively quiet voice, " _ You."  _

Nervously edging behind Atem, Bakura couldn't help but snark back, "Yes, we've established that my presence here is an outlier,  _ wizard _ , can we move on now?"

…. What. A.  _ Moron _ . To save the thief from himself, Atem side stepped so that he was completely in front of him, crossing his arms in an x-shape to signal everyone to stop talking as they all tried to respond at once. 

" _ Enough _ ," he snarled with all the authority he had once held, and satisfyingly everyone’s mouths snapped close, suitably chastised. Relaxing his pose, he pointed demandingly towards the sitting area, glaring until his priests(and Mana) got the hint to sit down. Once they were seated, he sighed, rubbing his forehead in exasperation. Turning slightly to glare at the thief over his shoulder, he hissed, “Keep your mouth shut until I calm them down,  _ idiot. _ ” 

For his troubles, all he got was a sneer and crossed arms, however _ that mouth  _ stayed shut so Atem would take his victories when he could. Lowering his hand to his side, he turned back to his friends, noting the scowls on the two men’s faces and the concerned look on Mana’s. Why did they have to come in before he had figured out how he wanted to explain things? Twisting his ring by the blue stone around his finger, he haltingly began to speak.    
  


“To catch you up to speed, Seto, I’ve decided to return to the world of the living to reunite with my partner and my friends. However... you see, the thing is… I didn’t quite come up with the “return to the surface” idea on my own…” 

Sensing the exasperation building behind him at his stuttered attempt to explain, he quickly stepped on Bakura’s foot, earning a yelp of pain but halting any attempts to “help” in their tracks. This gained him a stab with a bony finger in the side, but he valiantly ignored the irritant behind him. 

“Bakura also wants to go back, for reasons of his own, and he is willing to help me make it there. I apologize, Mana, Mahad, for not mentioning him sooner, but I wanted to be sure of his intentions before I brought him to speak with you. He seems sincere, and I have seen no traces of malice since we met up yesterday.” 

Holding up a hand to forestall any protests (most likely along the lines of “One day is not enough to be sure of someone’s intentions  _ Prince Atem _ ”), he continued, “I know you guys probably don’t trust him, and may never do so, but I’ve made my decision. I’ve decided to give him a chance, and I’m going to work with him to get back. Is that understood?” 

Silence reigned for a moment longer, before Chaos erupted once more, everyone trying to speak up at once to air their grievances with the situation, the priests standing up to use their unfair height to their advantage, the thief gleefully fueling the fire from behind him (no matter how darkly the tri-colored teen glared at him or how many times he was elbowed), and poor Mana was caught in the middle, staring wide eyed at the spectacle around her. This… was going more poorly than he had hoped. Atem sighed, feeling another headache building steadily. It was going to be a  _ long  _ morning.


End file.
